Blog Post; November 2022

OMAA Professional Development Committee Survey 2023

We would like to encourage OMAA members to complete the OMAA Professional Development Committee Survey to inform the Committee how OMAA can support you in your professional development/ educational needs in the coming year and add options for the CPD opportunities into Nextsense Continuing Education Program 2023. We ask that all current members please complete the survey at this link. This is your chance to influence the CPD program for OMAA members in 2023!

 

Supervisors required for University of NSW O&M Students

The Graduate Diploma of O&M program at UNSW needs additional supervisors to guide students through their practical placement.  For the remainder of 2022 and throughout 2023 UNSW are seeking supervisors across Australia.  Regardless of whether you have supervised many O&M students before or never supervised a student, this experience can be an excellent development opportunity as well as being a great way to support our profession.  COMS O&Ms can also gain ACVREP CEU points.  O&Ms who work for an organisation (with organisational support) and those who work as independent O&Ms can supervise students.  If you are interested, please email Matthew at matthew.g.walker@unsw.edu.au

 

Upcoming Conferences 

  • OMAA Online Symposium – registration to access the Symposium recordings remains available until 1 December 2022! This was a fantastic event that shared expertise and research on a wide range of practice areas. Attendees are eligible to receive 6 CEU points towards their ACVREP COMS recertification.
  • SPEVI Online Conference, 18 – 20 January 2023. Further details including registration information can be located on the SPEVI website.
  • International Online O&M Symposium, 25-27 January 2023. Further details can be found on the IOMOS website.
  • 2023 International Guide Dog Federation Conference, 27-30 April 2023 , Fairmont Hotel, Vancouver, Canada. Registrations are now open to IGDF organisations for the IGDF Conference. Please visit IGDF 2023 Conference Registration for further information and to book.
  • 18th International Mobility Conference (IMC18), 22-26 May 2023, Warsaw, Poland. This is a brilliant opportunity to get a global perspective on O&M. For more information, please visit the IMC website. You can also contact the Professional Development Committee (PDC) at pdc@omaaustralasia.com or contact Lil Deverell (info@lildeverell.net or 0418 370 312) who is planning to attend.

 

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

If you’re looking for CPD opportunities, remember to check the OMAA website where you’ll find many great course and conference options listed for your convenience.

Quantum are hosting a webinar on Thursday 24 November 2022 titled Better client outcomes through collaboration. This webinar will explore how Occupational Therapists and Orientation and Mobility Specialists can work with Quantum, where together they assess a client, trial Quantum products from a wide array of options to find the best fit, and further support the client by offering Quantum product training where necessary. Registration is required and a recording of the webinar will be made available.

Are you hosting or attending an upcoming CPD event? Would you like to be able to earn points towards ACVREP recertification at the same time? Click here to find out how you can register your event.

 

Job Vacancies

Have you looked at the Job Vacancies page on the OMAA website recently? You’ll find position vacancies listed for various agencies and locations across Australasia so remember to check it out.

One such vacancy comes from Guide Dogs NSW/ACT, who are currently seeking Expressions of Interest for recent or upcoming Graduates for O&M roles in a number of locations across NSW/ACT.

 

Research

 

Other news

  • Blind Citizens Australia (BCA) has launched its latest Pedestrian Safety Policy. The policy outlines BCA member concerns that the pedestrian environment has changed dramatically and is becoming increasingly cluttered and less easy to negotiate safely. You can read all of BCA’s policies here, including the Pedestrian Safety Policy.
  • Minister Bill Shorten has announced that Australian Paralympian and disability advocate Kurt Fearnley AO has been appointed Chair of the Board of the NDIA. The NDIA Board will also welcome new members Dr Graeme Innes and Maryanne Diamond, which is positive news for the O&M community given that Graeme and Maryanne understand blindness and vision loss. You can read more at this ABC news story or check out Minister Shorten’s announcement.
  • November 14 is World Diabetes Day, with the theme Access to Diabetes Care: Education to protect tomorrow. Diabetic retinopathy is an eye disease caused by diabetes and it is one of the leading causes of preventable blindness in Australia. The International Diabetes Federation is conducting a survey to explore levels of access to education. Health professionals and people living with diabetes can complete the survey via this link.

 

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